Aircraft Inspection Programs
Where the “steps” for an annual or phase inspection legally come from, per aircraft type — the manufacturer's checklist, the regulatory overlay that wraps around it, and the subscription data you work from.
Where the steps legally come from
The person performing an inspection must use a checklist while doing it.
Defines the minimum scope of an annual/100-hour inspection — the generic skeleton: cabin/cockpit, engine and nacelle, landing gear, wing and center section, empennage, propeller, radio/avionics, and each installed miscellaneous item. Your checklist can be your own, but it must at least cover Appendix D.
In practice shops work from the manufacturer's inspection checklist, which meets Appendix D and adds all of the type-specific items.
Two regulatory flavors
Small piston airplanes get a true annual (and a 100-hour if operated for hire), worked against the manufacturer's annual checklist.
Turbojets, turbo-propeller multi-engine, and large airplanes cannot use a plain annual — the operator must select an approved inspection program (manufacturer program, an approved aircraft inspection program, or a continuous-airworthiness program) and inspect on that schedule.
By type
| Type | Class | Inspection | Checklist source | Subscription |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Piper PA-46
Malibu / Mirage / M350 |
Pressurized piston single | Annual | Piper Maintenance Manual, Chapter 5 “Time Limits / Maintenance Checks” | Piper / ATP (subscription) |
| Beechcraft Baron B55
55-series |
Piston twin | Annual | Beech 55-series shop manual + Beechcraft inspection guide / forms | Textron Aviation 1View (subscription) |
| Beechcraft King Air 90 / 200
C90 / B200 families |
Turboprop twin | Program / phases | Beech Phase Inspection cards (Phases 1–4, ~200-hour cycles), MM Chapter 5 | Textron Aviation 1View (subscription) |
| Embraer Phenom 100
EMB-500 |
Light jet (turbojet) | Program / phases | Embraer Maintenance Planning Guide with task cards | FlyEmbraer (subscription) |
| Cessna Citation II
Model 550 |
Light jet (turbojet) | Program / phases | Cessna Phase 1–5 inspection documents, MM Chapter 5 | Textron Aviation 1View (subscription) |
The regulatory overlay
A real annual or phase wraps the manufacturer checklist together with these — the checklist alone does not cover them.
| Item | Basis / interval | |
|---|---|---|
| Airworthiness Directives | AD compliance review | Review the full AD list for the airframe, engine, propeller and appliances and confirm each recurring AD is current. |
| ELT | 91.207(d) — every 12 calendar months | Inspect the emergency locator transmitter for mounting, battery corrosion, signal and battery life. |
| Transponder | 91.413 — every 24 calendar months | Transponder test and inspection required to use it. |
| Pitot-static / altimeter | 91.411 — every 24 calendar months (IFR) | Static system, altimeter and automatic altitude reporting test for IFR flight. |
| Life-limited parts | per the TCDS / manufacturer | Track and retire life-limited components at their published limits. |
| STC ICAs | Instructions for Continued Airworthiness | Fold in the ICAs from every STC installed on the airframe — each can add its own inspection tasks and intervals. |
Data sources & subscriptions
- The OEM checklists are copyrighted subscription data — the play is subscriptions, not PDFs: Piper/ATP for the PA-46, Textron 1View for the Baron, both King Airs and the Citation, and FlyEmbraer for the Phenom.
- Across a six-type fleet (PA-46, Baron B55, King Air 90, King Air 200, Phenom 100, Citation II), a single Textron 1View subscription covers four of the six.
- “The steps” are really the manufacturer checklist + the regulatory overlay + a findings and authorization workflow — always work from current, subscribed maintenance data.
Reference summary only. Always work an inspection from current, subscribed manufacturer data and verify the regulatory citations against the current 14 CFR; intervals and program elections can change and are subject to the specific aircraft's TCDS, STCs and operating rule.
